Eskimos tame Lions, move to 5-0
Injuries continue for Edmonton as kicker and running back both lost
There would be no game-winning drive in the dying seconds this time around for the Edmonton Eskimos.
They didn’t need it, improving to 5-0 for the first time since 2011 with a 37-26 win over the B.C. Lions in front of 32,837 at Commonwealth Stadium.
But what the Eskimos do need is to find a way to stop the bleeding and break the injury curse that has plagued them all season.
It extended to running back Travon Van and kicker Sean Whyte on Friday, forcing the offence to play with all three downs in the fourth quarter.
But the start was much better. After having come up with just 12 points in their previous four first quarters, the Eskimos came up with their first seven points in the opening frame with a 14-yard touchdown reception by Brandon Zylstra. It capped a three-play, 79yard drive that saw Duke Williams catch a 65-yard pass on the game’s first snap.
They followed up with a 44yard field goal to push their lead to double digits before B.C. got on the board with a 49-yard field goal by Ty Long.
The first quarter ended with Mike Reilly throwing his first interception of the season, when Lions defensive half T.J. Lee picked off a pass intended for Vidal Hazelton. Reilly’s regular-season streak, dating back to the 2016 season, lasted for 220 straight passes.
But Edmonton’s defence made up for it early in the second quarter with cornerback Arjen Colquhoun coming up with his first CFL interception, leaping for a ball thrown by Travis Lulay on the doorstep of the end zone.
With his back against the wall, Reilly hit Hazelton this time for a 108-yard touchdown catch-andrun to lead 17-3. It set a new club record, eclipsing a 105-yard touchdown pass from Ricky Ray to Jason Tucker in Winnipeg in 2005.
Defensive captain Odell Willis followed up with the 82nd sack of his career, moving him into the CFL’s top 20 of all-time, before Eskimos safety Neil King came up with Edmonton’s second interception of the game.
The Lions answered back with a 17-yard touchdown by Manny Arceneaux before Whyte hit a 41yard field goal to take a 20-10 lead into halftime on the strength of 295 passing yards up to that point.
But B.C. stormed back with a 44yard field goal and then a five-yard touchdown catch by running back Jeremiah Johnson in the first six minutes of the third quarter.
Chris Edwards came up with the Eskimos biggest return of the season, bringing the ensuing kickoff 86 yards into the red zone to reclaim the lead with a 19-yard field goal.
The fourth quarter saw the Eskimos finish a drive that was catapulted by a 27-yard Cory Watson catch. But an injury to Whyte led to the Eskimos gambling on third-and-goal from 14 yards out, which resulted in a pass-interference call against the Lions on a coach’s challenge.
Reilly punched it in from the one- yard line to lead 29-20 after the ensuing two-point conversion pass fell incomplete.
Long-snapper Ryan King and Willis handled kickoff duties, while the offence played with all three downs the rest of the way. But it turned out to be a blessing, as Williams came up with a first down on third-and-11 from the 26 yard-line, leading to a one-yard QB keeper into the end zone with 2:14 left.
A two-point conversion pass to Hazelton gave them a 17-point lead.
Lulay ran in a touchdown from two yards out with 53 seconds left, but the convert kick went wide left. The Lions couldn’t tap into Edmonton’s dying-second magic as Hazelton knocked the onside attempt out of bounds.
It was Reilly taking a page out of Lulay’s 400-yard book, completing 24 of 33 for 412 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Hazelton had game highs of eight catches for 159 yards and a touchdown, with Zylstra adding seven catches for 107 yards and a TD.
Lulay completed 22 of 26 passes for two touchdowns and two interceptions.
EXTRA POINTS: Eskimos equipment manager Dwayne Mandrusiak was presented with a commemorative game ball by the B.C. Lions on Friday, marking his 1,000th CFL game. “A lot’s changed over the years,” said Eskimos Reilly, who moved past Warren Moon into third place on the club’s alltime completions list. “Apparently, the length of your shorts has not” ... Eskimos RB Travon Van didn’t make it through the first half before heading into the dressing room with a neck injury, as FB Calvin McCarty finished the game at tailback ... Lions DB T.J. Lee left late in the half with an arm injury ... Eskimos kicker Sean Whyte left with a leg injury in the fourth quarter.